Men in ancient Egypt were given 8ft-long prenups: 2,480-year-old papyrus reveals rights of women during the Old Kingdom
- Document written in demotic script and is currently on display in Chicago
- It describes how the woman who drew up agreement would receive '1.2 pieces of silver and 36 bags of grain every year for the rest of her life'
- Women in ancient Egyptian society had the same legal rights as men
Ancient Egyptians took their legal rights seriously - and when it came to drawing up marriage documents, women knew how to get their way.
An 8-foot long (2.4 metres) contract, currently hanging at the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago, reveals just how far their nuptial agreements went.
The 2,480-year-old legal document is written in demotic script and was created to make sure that if a marriage didn't work, the wife wouldn't want for food or money.
Detail from the right side of an ancient Egyptian annuity contract. The lady who drew up this document had a compensation which included '1.2 pieces of silver and 36 bags of grain every year for the rest of her life'
The lady who drew up this document had a compensation which included '1.2 pieces of silver and 36 bags of grain every year for the rest of her life.'
'Most people have no idea that women in ancient Egypt had the same legal rights as men,' Dr Emily Teeter, an Egyptologist at the Institute told Atlas Obscura.
Women in the Old Kingdom could manage, own, and sell private property, which at the time included slaves, servants and livestock.
They could also resolve legal settlements, create marriage or divorce contracts and were entitled to sue, no matter their marital status.
This ancient Egyptian annuity contract was signed in 365 BCE. This image shows half of its huge, 8ft length
Women in the Old Kingdom, such as the one illustrated in this carving, could manage, own, and sell private property, which at the time included slaves, servants and livestock. They could also resolve legal settlements, create marriage contract or a divorce contract and were entitled to sue, no matter their marital status
Marriages were thought to be a huge part of Egyptian society, with some historians claiming Egyptians felt it their duty to be wed.
Husbands could marry more than one wife, which could include their first cousins, brothers and sisters – although incest was frowned upon in anywhere other than the royal family.
Almost any excuse could be used to end a marriage, and anyone who had drawn up a contract would have to honour those terms.
In one marriage contract, for instance, the husband listed all of the property that his wife owned before the marriage and agreed to repay her for all of it in the case of a divorce.
Egypt was also part of history's first labor strike, according to other documents seen at the Oriental Institute. This slab shows how men who were building royal tombs went on strike until they were paid
The wife, however, had to pay 30 pieces of silver to be given a prenup.
These contracts 'were extremely advantageous to the wife,' writes Professor Janet Johnson in an article for the University of Chicago Library, according to the report in Atlas Obscura.
'One may assume that the woman and her family exerted as much pressure as they could to ensure that the husband made such a contract.'
Egypt was also part of history's first labor strike, according to other documents seen at the Oriental Institute.
On slab shows how men who were building royal tombs went on strike until they were paid.
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